14032025-CT-01.qxd 3/14/2025 12:39 AM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune MC TO WITHDRAW ~50 CR FROM PENSION FUND TO PAY SALARIES PUNJAB SECURE HISTORIC WIN OVER REST OF INDIA KARTAR CHEEMA GOES DOWN THE MEMORY LANE Cash-strapped civic body fails to pay salaries to 9,748 staffers, including 6,965 outsourced workers. P5 Punjab lads defeat the Rest of India team on the basis of their first innings lead. P5 Pollywood actor Kartar Cheema goes down memory lane to recollect fond times, as he bats for a safe Holi. P8 » » WHAT’S ON CHANDIGARH MAX 31°C | MIN 16°C YESTERDAY MAX 31.7°C | MIN 16.3°C SUNRISE SATURDAY 6:32 AM /THETRIBUNECHD Researcher suffered parking ordeal for a year, claims family PARTLY CLOUDY SUNSET FRIDAY 6.30 PM » FRIDAY | 14 MARCH 2025 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE Holi frenzy Was ‘harassed’ by neighbours in housing society MOHALI BRAWL Tribune News Service Tree Walk: At Rose Garden, Sector 16, March 16, 8:30 am, limited seats, registration is free for all, but compulsory, contact: chandigarhtreelovers@ gmail.com Ran Prayog: By Chandigarh Sangeet Natak Akademi, play “Punashchya Krishna” to be staged on March 14, main auditorium of Tagore Theatre, Sector 18, 6:30 pm Exhibition: ‘Writing in French – A world of voices’, from March 13 to 31, 9 am to 6 pm.Alliance Française, Sector 36, Mohali, March 13 A day after a researcher of the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) here died in a parking-related scuffle with his neighbour in Sector 67, deceased Dr Abhishek Swarnkar’s mother Malto Devi claimed that their next door neighbour, Monty (26), was harassing them over the parking of their son’s bike for the past one year. “We rented this house in December 2023 as it was near IISER where my son was doing research. Abhishek had changed three-four places in the neighbourhood for parking his bike but he (Monty) always had a problem. When Abhishek parked somewhere else, other neighbours started objecting. He used to tell Abhishek to park his bike over the cover of a gutter, but APNI MANDI Chandigarh: Sector 24 & 46 Panchkula: Sector 20 Mohali: Kumbhra Please send information about events in tricity at: whatson@tribunemail.com Chandigarh, March 13 An Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) has been suspended after he was found brandishing his service pistol outside Centra Mall in an inebriated state this morning. He was in civil clothes. At 4.24 am, the police control room received information about a man carrying a loaded pistol at the mall. ASI Subhash Chand, along with a police team, reached the location where they met four persons, Sahil, Lovepreet, Jasanpreet and Jaipreet. They informed the it was an uneven place.” The family, natives of Dhanbad in Jharkhand, said, “We were new to this place and did not know that vehicles had to be parked according to the place designated for accommodation. He said ‘teri gaadi uda dunga’ (I will throw your bike). When Abhishek said Students celebrate Holi at Panjab University on Thursday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: PRADEEP TEWARI PAGE 7 1,300 cops to keep hooligans in check Tribune News Service Chandigarh, March 13 Nearly 1,300 police personnel will be deployed across the city to ensure peaceful Holi celebrations. The deployment will include 10 DSPs, 16 SHOs, 27 Inspec- tors and around 1,300 police personnel. The “Gerhi Route”, from Sector 11 to a small chowk on the road separating Sectors 9 and 10, will be designated as a limited vehicle zone. Security arrangements will also be strengthened at key loca- Court order follows a request made by Chandigarh Traffic Police Dept Dushyant Singh Pundir Ramkrishan Upadhyay Chandigarh, March 13 Don’t be afraid of being challaned for jumping traffic signals while making way for ambulances or VVIP cavalcades. Sachin Yadav, Chief Judicial Magistrate, Chandigarh, has cancelled 69 such challans on a request made by the Chandigarh Traffic Police. The police approached the court for the cancellation of the challans after the department concerned found that the violators jumped the signal for genuine reasons like giving way to ambulances or VVIP cavalcades. In the request made to the court for issuing order for cancellation/ withdrawal of these traffic challans, the Inspector-in-Charge of Police Command and Control Centre (PCCC), Sector ASI brandishes pistol near mall, suspended Tribune News Service Feb 24: The Kharar police arrested around 24 youths involved in a clash between two groups in a parking lot of Future Heights Society. During the clash, which too place over a parking dispute, three gunshots were fired. Feb 9: Three gunshots were fired after a clash between two neighbours over car parking in Sector 77. One of the neighbours, Rohit, sustained head injuries when he was hit with a stick. Manjit, a PUDA Superintendent, allegedly fired gunshots at his neighbour’s house. we will complain, he pushed him forcefully.” The victim, Dr Abhishek Swarnkar (40), had just parked his bike and come upstairs when Monty started shouting near the bike. Soon, a scuffle ensued and Monty allegedly pinned Abhishek to the ground. The researcher fell on the ground and passed out. Monty took him to a hospital in his SUV but till then it was too late. It has now emerged that the victim was reportedly undergoing treatment for a kidney-related problem at the PGI. The Phase 11 SHO, Gagandeep Singh, said, “A postmortem examination was conducted today and the body handed over to the kin. The exact cause of death will be known after receiving the viscera report.” The victim’s colleagues and friends are in a state of shock. “Abhishek was a bright researcher and it is sad that we lost him due to such a Continued on page 6 tions such as Sukhna Lake, Elante Mall and the busy markets of Sectors 15, 17, 20, 22, 34, 35 and 36 to keep hooligans in check. To ensure public safety, PCR patrolling will be intensified around educational institutions, includ- ing Panjab University and local colleges. Additionally, motorcycle teams will patrol colony areas. Special police deployment will be made at Ram Darbar, Kajheri, Bapu Dham Colony, Maloya and Sector 56. Continued on page 6 Challans of 69 drivers making way Startup Policy gets dept nod, for ambulances, VVIPs cancelled offers ~10 cr annual incentives Likely to be rolled out soon after approval by Guv Tribune News Service The Wise Owl Literary Awards: Guest speakers Sudeep Sen and Shinie Antony, Foothills Clubhouse, Sector 1, New Chandigarh, March 15, 5:30 pm PAST INCIDENTS police that a man had arrived at the mall carrying a pistol. The suspect fled the scene when he noticed them calling the police. During the investigation, the police identified the man as ASI Sanjiv Kumar, who was posted (in reserve) at the Industrial Area police station. He visited the mall in civil dress and was carrying his service pistol. A medical examination was conducted, which confirmed that the ASI was intoxicated. He has been suspended and sent to the Police Lines, Sector 26. ‘A GOOD INITIATIVE’ This is a good initiative taken by the Traffic Police Department and they should keep checking the traffic challans issued by them in a routine manner, so that no wrong challan is issued, said the court. 17, said violations captured by CCTV cameras are processed by the Local Processing Unit and forwarded to the ITMS e-Challan Smart City System. The operators observe videos or images, match the details of the vehicles and after verification, put up the challans on the NIC-e Challan Portal. After approval, an auto-generated SMS notice is sent on the registered mobile number of the violator along with a payment link. He said the Virtual Court is in existence since Sep- tember 2023 and e-challans, except for non-compoundable offences, are sent to the Virtual Court after 30 days from the date of issuance. Various requests have been received by the PCCC to cancel challans due to certain reasons and some were found genuine. As the challans are already with the court, they are unable to consider these requests. Such challans are required to be cancelled on various grounds such as the violator was giving way to an ambulance or a VIP cavalcade, the violation was committed on the direction of police officials, the vehicle was stolen or the violator had some medical issues. In view of all these considerations, the order for the cancellation/ withdrawal of such challans be issued, he said. The court said it was clear that an inquiry had been conducted by the Inspector, PCCC, Traffic Department, and the challans mentioned were found to be wrongly issued. This is a good initiative taken by the Traffic Department and they should keep checking the traffic challans issued by them in a routine manner, so that no wrong challan is issued, said the court. In such circumstances, the present application is allowed and direction is issued to the official concerned to do the needful. Munish Dewan, advocate, hailed the initiative. He said motorists are usually in a dilemma when they find themselves in such a situation. But with the initiative of the police and the court’s order, they will have no issue giving way to ambulances at traffic signals. Tribune News Service Chandigarh, March 13 With focus on encouraging innovation and economic growth, the UT Finance Department has given approval to Chandigarh Startup Policy-2025. According to officials, the policy will be sent to the UT Administrator for final approval and could be rolled out next week. It is aimed at boosting entrepreneurship with financial incentives worth Rs 10 crore annually and a total corpus of Rs 50 crore over a period of five years. After multiple revisions and delays, the main focus of policy has been kept on developing startups and strengthening incubators in the region. On September 3, 2022, the UT Administration unveiled the draft startup policy with a dedicated startup fund for the city ecosystem. In October last year, Pun- jab Governor and UT Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria approved the policy, but gave some suggestions to be included in the policy. Kataria emphasised the need to simplify the administrative procedure in it. Under the policy, three government higher education institutions (HEIs) and one private HEI will be designated as UT-recognised incubators. Each government incubator will receive up to Rs 30 lakh, while the private one will get Rs 20 lakh for technology upgrades. Additionally, an annual sustenance allowance of Rs 7.5 lakh will be provided per incubator for operational expenses. To support mentorship and training, incubators will also receive Rs 5 lakh annually. To encourage entrepreneurship, the administration has earmarked Rs 90 lakh for a grand startup competition. Each year, the top 20 startups will receive a grant of Rs 2 lakh, along with incubation support for one year, while the next 50 runners-up will be awarded Rs 1 lakh each. For seed-stage and earlygrowth startups, a Rs 4.6-crore corpus has been set aside. Under seed-stage startups, 20 eligible ventures will receive up to Rs 7 lakh each, with an additional Rs 2 lakh for women-led and transgender-founded ventures. Under early-growth startups, 20 eligible ones will get up to Rs 12 lakh each to support commercialisation. The policy also includes reimbursement-based fiscal incentives, such as subsidised rent of Rs 5,000 for office space per month, support of Rs 1 lakh for IT and quality certifications, a support of Rs 10,000 for filing patent, Rs Rs 50,000 to Rs 2.5 lakh for conference and workshop participation and Rs 2-3 lakh for participation in acceleration programme. City gears up for 1st Chandigarh Marathon in Oct Man robbed of taxi at gunpoint Indian, foreign runners to participate in event being held on lines of Mumbai, Delhi marathons in Mohali Deepankar Sharda event. “Yes, we are finding 10.5-KM LOOP NEAR CAPITOL COMPLEX Tribune News Service Chandigarh, March 13 The UT Sports Department will be conducting the 1st Chandigarh Marathon on the lines of Mumbai and Delhi (half) marathons in October, which will see participation by international runners as well. The event was earlier scheduled for January in the annual sports calendar 2024-25. The participants will be competing in various categories — 42.195 km (full marathon), 21km (half marathon), 10 km and 5 km — and the winners will get Sources claimed that the Sports Department is focusing on conducting the marathon from the Capitol Complex, given less traffic movement on roads in the area. The run will cover a 10.5-km loop before ending back at the Capitol Complex. The cut-off timing (men and women) will be announced after holding talks with experts, said a source. The minimum and maximum temperatures in Chandigarh during October usually remain between 23°C and 32°C, respectively. However, the Meteorological Department has predicted warm weather in October. cash awards. The department has tied up with a company to get the route certification, which is mandatory for conducting such international events. In the run up to the event, the department has launched a “logo design and tag line competition”. The c m y b last date for submitting entries is March 17 and the first three winners will be awarded Rs 10,000, Rs 7,000 and Rs 5,000, respectively. “The department has started the process. The major part will be getting the route certification, which is already underway. Not only Indian or tricity runners but the event will also be open to international runners,” said Sorabh Kumar Arora, Director, Sports. The department is also finding ways to make the marathon a plastic-free all possible ways to make it a plastic-free event. Cups may replace water bottles; traditional metal discs (medals) can be replaced with wooden ones or the chest number taping may get replaced with printed material....right now, everything is under consideration,” added Arora. In recent times, especially after the Covid pandemic, such activities have increased in the city. Almost every weekend, half marathons or minimarathons are held by various organisations. Tribune News Service Mohali, March 13 Four unidentified persons took away a taxi at gunpoint in Phase 2 around 12:30 am on Wednesday. The taxi driver, Navdeep stated that he had returned from Dehradun to his office in Phase 2 at night. Four persons standing there started scuffling with him. They asked for the car keys but when the driver resisted, they pointed a pistol at him and fled with the car. A case of snatching and Arms Act has been registered.